Seal-lock.



W. F. WALKER.

SEAL LOCK.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 16. 1917.

Patented Bebe 5, 1918.

WILLIAM FULTON WALKER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SEAL-LOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 5, rats.

Application filed June 16, 1917. Serial No. 175,122.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM FULTON TVVALKER, a citizen of the United States, and resident of the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Seal-Locks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to seal locks. In some aspects it is an improvement upon the device of my Patent No. 1,001,831, of October 3, 1911, while in others it is of more generic properties. Its principal objects are to provide means for looking a car door with sealing provisions whereby the door may not be unlocked without breaking orpicking the seal, and to provide means whereby the sealing of cars may be done more expeditiously, satisfactorily and with greater certainty of immediate sealing after the car is loaded and the door closed than according to hitherto known devices. Further objects and advantages will appear hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification, I have illustrated what I consider the preferred form of device, Figure 1 being a face View of the same as applied to a car, Fig. 2 being a vertical section of the same as on the line 22 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 being a small fragmentary sectional detail as on the line 33 of Fig. 2 showing the engagement of a seal at one side of the device.

The main base or support 10 carries an integrally formed casing comprising the upper wall 11, the lower wall 12, and the side walls 13 and 14. The side walls are:

provided with bosses 15 countersunk to receive the heads 16 of the rod 17. Upon the rod 17 is pivoted the closure or door 18. This door has a curved upper part 19, side inward projections 20, 21 and a bottom inward projection 22, the latter being adapted to cooperate with a projection 23 on the lower wall 12 in preventing an unauthorized person from inserting a thin instrument for unlocking purposes into the interior of the casing at thelower part of the door. The side projections 20, 21 are close to the side walls 13 and 14: respectively whereby unauthorized entry may not be made by a lock picking instrument at the door'sides. The

rod 17 also'carries pivotally the pendent.

and swinging detent 25, one side of which is close to theflange rib 21 onjthe door. I The door-"18 also" carrlesa projection 26,"

seen in full lines but partially broken away in Fig. 2, thus substantially forming a secondary hous ng for the upper end of the detent 25. The detent 25 carries a projection 27 adapted to be engaged by a cooperating projection 28 on the part 19 of the door 18. It will thus be seen that when the dooris swung outward, as in opening the same the projection 28 will impinge upon the projection 27 swinging the lower end of the detent outward also. An extension 30 of the upper end of the door between the side wall 21 and the small housing wall 26 is adapted to prevent a picking instrument from being passed into the casing at the upper portion and into engagement with the projection 27 of the detent.

The base 10 is secured as by bolts 33 to the sliding door 34: of the car, the heads of the bolts being outside. Upon the sill 35 of the car, or upon any suitable part thereof in proper relation to the door, is secured as by bolts 36 and 37 a keeper or holding member 4:0 which is preferably provided with two horizontal parts as and 43 connected together to form a space between them into which passes the extension M of the base 10. The keeper or holding member 40 is preferably provided with ribs 46 and 47 about thehead or nut of the bolt 37 to prevent unauthorized loosening of the same. The bottom wall 12 and the several parts 12, 13, 4 1 are provided with alining holes through which the bolt 48 projects in the locked position of the device shown in Fig. 2. This bolt 18 has substantial width and thickness and is suitably rectangular in cross section and is formed of iron or steel. It terminates in a head 50 having an extension 51 adapted to engage the lower end of the detent 25. To the head 50 is secured, as by rivets, the rod 58 passing through a hole in the top wall 11 of the closure, to which rod 53 is secured a ring 54 adapted to be engaged by the hook 55 secured to the base 10. It will thus be seen that by raising the rod 53 the bolt 48 will be retracted from its locked position, as shown in Fig. 1. The hook 555 maintains the parts in unlocked condition so long as may be desirable. WVhen the locking bolt 48 is lowered, as in Fig. 2, it will be noted that it acts as an obstruction to the turning or withdrawal of the bolt 37. Referring to Fig. 3 it will be noted that the side wall 13 has a hole therein and that'the 'metal of the door 18 is cut away,

as at 61. The side wall 14 has a similar hole shown at 62, Fig. 2. Thus the seal 68, which is of the endless band type, when in closed or locked condition, may be passed, when in open condition, through the holes 60, 62 of the side walls across the face of the door 18 and the ends of the seal brought together as in the sealing head 64 whereby the door 18 is sealed. It is obvious that before the door 18 can be opened the seal must be broken or successfully tampered with.

The operation of the device is as follows: At all times before the car is ready to be sealed, and at such time, the bolt 48 is normally in retracted position, the ring 54 being engaged by the book 55. Such retraction was necessary to unlock the door before opening it. Let us assume that loading is underway and that the sealer has come along and afiixed the seal 63 upon the device as shown in Fig. 1. The car door may be swung back and forth as often as may be desirable during the loading operation, and, when the loading is finally effected it is only necessary for the workman to close the door, unhook the ring 54, lower the parts 53, 50 and 48 into engagement with the keeper 40 whereupon the car door becomes locked. \Vhile the projection 51 of the head 50 is passing along the inner surface of the detent 25 the detent is forced outward, or into its dotted'line position in Fig. 2, the projection 51 passing the end of the detent,whereupon the detent swings back into the full line position of Fig. 2, through the action of gravitation, thus locking the bolt 48 against retraction. The car door is now not only locked but is at the same time sealed, and

before it can be unlocked the seal must be removed. Upon removing the seal, as 63, the closure 18 maybe swung outward, swinging the lower end of the detent 25 out of engagement with the projection 51 and permitting the bolt 48 to be raised.

The device is peculiarly important in view of the ditliculties attending the maintenance of safety of goods in transit. Heretofore, so far as I am aware, it has always been necessary first to load the car and then promptly to seal it, a practice which requires the attention of the sealer at a particular time and place for each car. Such seals are ordinarily not in the possession of more than one anthorized person at a given station and it is very difficult for him to meet all of the requirements of prompt sealing as the practice has hitherto existed. According to these improvements the sealer may go along the tracks in the morning and seal all of the cars to be loaded, the doors being open. As soon as the car is loaded the workmen can finish the sealing operation by simply closing the door and lowering the bolt 48. Numerous other advantages will appear to persons interested in the art, I

The invention. is not limited to the specific details of construction or arrangement of parts shown as many variations of the same may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I contemplate all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a seal lock the combination of a housing having upper and lower walls apertured to receive a sliding bolt, a sliding bolt in said apertures and extending above and below the housing, means outside the housing for releasably maintaining said slidingbolt in one extended position thereof, means within the housing for maintaining said bolt in its other extended position, a movable part accessible from outside the housing associatedwith said last mentioned means for moving the same out of maintaining position, a keeper for the bolt and means for sealing said movable part.

2. In a seal lock, the combination of ahousing adapted to be secured to a'car door, said housinghaving a movable part associ ated therewith accessible from outside the housing and having means for sealing the same in a given relative position, a reciproeating bolt partly within the housing movable independently of said movable part and extending beyond the housing, a gravity controlled detent'within the housing adapted to maintain said bolt in extended position, means associated with said movable part and with said detent for moving the detent out of such holding relation whereby the bolt may be retracted when the movable part is moved, said detent being adapted to swing out of its normal holding position and then back when said movable part is in sealed position and said bolt is moved from its retracted position into its extended position.

3. In a seal lock, the combination of a housing, a bolt partly within said housing and permanently carried thereby, said bolt being adapted to engage lockingly a holding member at one end of the bolt, a movable closure for said housing, means for maintaining said bolt in its locking position, said means being adapted to permit move ment of said bolt into locking position when said closure is in housing-closing position, said means being under the control of said closure whereby said means are moved outof such locking relation when the closure is moved, and means for sealing said closure when in housing-closing position.

4. In a seal lock, the combination of a housing having a movable closure therefor, a reciprocating substantially vertically dis? posed bolt partly within said housing, said bolt having aportion thereof adapted to engage holding mean outside of and below the housing, a pivoted detent within the housing adapted to engage said bolt to hold the same in engagement with said holding means, said detent being under the control of the closure whereby when the closure is moved so as to open said housing said detent comes out off? engagement with the bolt whereby the bolt may be retracted, said detent being so arranged that when the door is closed said bolt may be moved into its extended position from its retracted position and automatically become locked by said detent, and means for sealing said closure in its housing closing position.

5. In a seal lock, the combination of a housing having a movable closure therefor, a reciprocating bolt partly within said housing and permanently carried thereby, said .bolt being movable in one direction inde pendently of movement of the closure, a part thereof without said housing being adapted to interfit with a holding member havin g an opening therefor, a holding member having an opening for the bolt, means within said housing for normally maintaining said bolt in locked engagement with said holding member, said means being of such construction and so mounted a to move out of such maintaining position by the action of the bolt when the closure is in housing-closing position and while the bolt is being moved from its retracted to its extended position and to return into such maintaining position when the bolt has been completely moved into engagement with said holding member, said means being movable by said closure when the closure is moved into housingopening position to retract said means out of such maintaining relationship whereby the bolt may be retracted, and means for sealing the closure in its housing-closing position.

6. In a seal lock, the combination of parts adapted to be secured respectively to relatively movable structures, one of said part-s comprising a housing having a movable part accessible from outside the housing, means for sealing said movable part, a reciprocating bolt permanently carried by and being partly within the housing, a projecting portion of the bolt being adapted to engage lockingly said other part outside the housing, said bolt having an extended and a retracted position, a detent within the housing adapted normally to maintain the bolt in its extended position, said detent being under the control of said movable part and being movable thereby out of said maintaining relation to the bolt when the movable part. is moved, said detent being also movable temporarily out of maintaining position bv said bolt when the bolt is moved from retracted into extended position when said movable part is sealed.

'7'. In a seal lock, the combination of a locking member adapted to be secured to a car door, a holding member adapted to be secured to a relatively fixed car part adjacent to the locking member, a movable projecting part carried by the locking member, and adapted to engage said holding member to lock the door, relatively movable means for maintaining said projecting part in locked relation with said holding member, a movable member having a position for sealing the same and a position not adapted for sealing the same associated with said locking member for moving said projecting-part-maintaining means out of maintaining position whereby said projecting part may be retracted, said maintaining means being such that said projecting'. part may be moved into locking position when said movable member is in position for sealing the same, and means for sealing said movable member when in position for sealing the same.

8. In a seal lock, the combination of a support for a sliding bolt, a sliding bolt permanently carried by said support, said bolt having a portion thereof adapted to extend into locking relation with a holding part, a pivoted gravity controlled detent associated with said bolt adapted to maintain said bolt in locking position, means forming a housing for said detent, said detent being adapted to move into an out-of-the-Way position when the bolt is moved from its retracted into its locking position, a movable member accessible from outside said housing for moving said detent out of its bolt holding position, and means for sealing said movable member.

9. In a seal lock, the combination of a keeper for the end of a belt, a locking member having a permanently carried bolt movable into retracted position and into extended position and adopted to engage the keeper when in extended position, endless band means "for sealing the locking member with the bolt in retracted position, and means for holding the bolt against retraction so long as said sealing means are intact when the bolt is moved into extended or looking position after the device is sealed.

10. In a seal lock, the combination of a locking member having a locking part perina-nently carried thereby and mounted to be moved into retracted position and then into extended position, holding means carried by the locking member for holding said locking part in extended position, movable meansalso carried by the locking member for moving saidholding means out of such holding position whereby said locking part may be retracted, means for sealing said movable means when said locking part is in retracted position, said locking-paltholding means being adapted to move auto matically into its holding position when the device is sealed and the bolt is moved vfrom retracted into extended position.

11. In a seal lock, the combination of a locking member adapted to be secured to a car part, a holding member adapted to be secured to another car part and adjacent to the locking member, said car parts being movable relative to each other, said locking member including a movable bolt permanently carried by the locking member and having aretracted or unlocking position and an. extended or locking position, said bolt being adapted to engage the holding member When in locking position, endless band means for sealing the device With the bolt in its retracted or unlocking position, and means for holding the bolt in locking position against retraction so long as said sealing means are intact.

12. In a seal lock for car doors and the like, the combination of a support, a looking element permanently carried thereby and movable into extended or looking posimeans are intact when the device is sealed 7 and the bolt is moved into extended position. 7

13. In a seal lock for car doors and the like, the combination of 'a'support, a bolt permanently carried thereby and movable into extended or locking position and into retracted or unlocking position, endless band means for sealing the device With the bolt in in its retracted position, and yielding means in association With the bolt and With said sealing means for providing movability of WVILLIAM FULTON WALKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, I). C. i 

